Stanley Kuberik

All of the many collaborations between organist Shirley Scott and tenor saxophonist Stanley Turrentine in the 1960s resulted in high-quality soul jazz, groovin' music that was boppish enough to interest jazz listeners and basic enough for a wider audience. This CD reissue has the duo (joined by bassist Bob Cranshaw and drummer Otis "Candy" Finch) performing a pair of Scott originals, Benny Golson's "Five Spot After Dark," Sonny Rollins' obscure "Grand Street" and the veteran standard "Flamingo."

Stanley Turrentine's great blues-inflected tenor sax work for Blue Note Records in the 1960s helped build the template for what became known as soul-jazz, but as Turrentine left Blue Note and began working with Creed Taylor's CTI Records in the early '70s, he became increasingly a crossover artist, earning his keep with a kind of smooth, orchestrated after-hours chillout music that was delivered with just enough groove to keep things breathing…

Stanley Turrentine is generally pegged as a soul-jazz man but also has proven quite adept in several other styles of modern jazz, as heard on this diverse compilation of tunes from three initially unreleased Blue Note dates with a larger ensemble. While hitting up a handful of the pop tunes of the day, Turrentine shows he is interested in and capable of tackling more modern compositions, with the vibrant and exciting assistance of pianist McCoy Tyner, also not a slouch when soul-jazz is placed in front of him. That Turrentine plays a most enjoyable fluid, tuneful, and tonic tenor saxophone has never been questioned, but what he adds in value as a leader on these tracks further cements his estimable reputation…

West Side Highway reunites Stanley Turrentine with arranger/conductor Claus Ogerman for a funky yet oddly melancholy crossover session that at its best suggests a latter-day interpretation of the tenorist's classic Blue Note dates. Ogerman's bold, dramatic arrangements boast an atypical elegance and restraint that beautifully underline the soulfulness of Turrentine's solos. Even better, the backing vocals that hampered previous LPs are absent here, affording a new spaciousness for the all-star contributions of Eric Gale, Cornell Dupree, Ron Carter, and Hubert Laws. A shame the material is so tepid and predictable, including yet another reading of Turrentine's signature "Sugar" and the jazz perennial "Walkin'."

Stanley Turrentine's stint with Creed Taylor's CTI label may not have produced any out-and-out classics on the level of the very best LPs by Freddie Hubbard, Hubert Laws, or George Benson, but the bluesy tenorist's output was consistently strong and worthwhile for all but the most stridently anti-fusion listeners. Salt Song was Turrentine's second album for CTI, and while it's perhaps just a small cut below his debut Sugar, it's another fine, eclectic outing that falls squarely into the signature CTI fusion sound: smooth but not slick, accessible but not simplistic…